Harem Daily Life

Chapter 1076 Successful opening

On the carriage back to the palace, Hua Yurong recalled the Empress's domineering scene and wanted to laugh: "Mother is usually gentle and kind, but I never expected that she could scare people so badly that they would lose their courage."

Tao Yanyan smiled and said, "They all learned a bit from being around your father. But ultimately, the Su family mother and daughter have to be able to stand on their own two feet. You can help them for a while, but not forever."

Hua Yurong nodded, recalling how she herself had started her own business at a young age and had gradually gained a foothold through hard work and perseverance. If the young lady from the Su family wanted to stand on her own in the future, she would inevitably need to undergo a lot of training. They had stood up for her today, but from now on, she would have to rely on herself.

The two returned to the palace. Hua Yurong went back to Qingyun Palace, while Tao Yanyan distributed some snacks she had bought outside the palace to the children before returning to her study to write and draw. The food court was about to begin renovations, and the entire layout would be rearranged. Once it opened, it would be the most bustling food court in the entire capital.

She spent 3,600 taels to buy such a large shop, aiming to break even in two months. All future income would be profit, and just thinking about it made her smile.

He Min and He Yinuo had already prepared their money. Seeing that their mother had bought the shop, they brought their silver to invest. Tao Yanyan had Xianglan register everything, and the two officially became shareholders of the food city. The Empress Dowager also invested, and Tao Yanyan gave her a 10% share. He Xiaoqi wasn't to be outdone, carrying a gold chain in its mouth and placing it in front of Tao Yanyan. Tao Yanyan secretly whispered a few words to it, then put the gold chain back on, coaxing He Xiaoqi into a docile, pampering it.

Today, He Xiaoqi finally confirmed that it was indeed the Queen Mother's most beloved baby bird. The Queen Mother said that its share of the profits would be paid by her, and that it shouldn't tell the other babies, because the other babies had put in real money, while it could get income for free without putting in any money.

Not only did it keep its gold chain, but it also received a golden house, a golden bed, and a golden bowl built by its mother at great expense, making it the happiest baby bird in the world.

In less than half a month, the Su family's shop, which had been closed, reopened, and the unprecedented layout of the food court immediately attracted the attention of the people of Beijing.

"Look, it's half price on the first day! You can eat hundreds of local delicacies. Let's go in and take a look. I really want to try the cold noodles from Northwest China. I wonder if we can get them."

"There's also a lucky draw. The grand prize is a 50-tael all-you-can-eat voucher? 50 taels! Even if you don't eat it yourself, you can sell it at a discount. But you have to spend at least 5 taels to be eligible for the lucky draw. 5 taels of silver is a lot."

"What's there to be afraid of? Let's pool our money to eat, and then sell the winning tickets and split the profits."

"Yes, yes, that's a great idea! Let's go in right away!"

……

Outside the food court, the place was bustling with noise. Not far away, Su Xing accompanied his mother, watching their once deserted shop now teeming with customers again, and they smiled at each other.

“Your father put a lot of effort into this shop during his lifetime. Seeing it so bustling today must have brought him some comfort.”

“Mother, I never imagined that Her Majesty the Empress would be so passionate about business, and so successful at it. In the past, I only knew that daughters of noble families had to learn needlework and embroidery, be good at reading accounts, and then manage household affairs in the inner quarters after marriage. I never thought that someone as noble as the Empress could go out and do business. It is said that commerce is a lowly profession, but I don’t think that merchants are treated so harshly in our Great Zhou.”

Mother Su glanced at her: "Don't think that everyone can become like the Empress. Alright, hurry back to the manor. Tomorrow is the flower viewing banquet, so prepare well today. If you catch the eye of any lady, your marriage will be settled."

Su Xing wasn't so keen on going to the flower viewing banquet. If she had previously listened to her mother and thought that getting married was the most important thing in her life, now she wanted to find another path, like the Empress, to rely on her own abilities and be self-reliant.

On the first day, the food court had a great opening. That evening, when the accounts were tallied, Hua Yuerong was so shocked that she almost thought she had made a mistake.

"Three thousand seven hundred taels? Even after deducting all costs, that's still eighteen or nineteen hundred taels." Doesn't that mean the cost of a shop can be earned back in just two days?

Tao Yanyan wasn't as surprised as she was; this was within her expectations.

"Today's large crowds were attracted by the lucky draw and various opening promotions. Once the prices return to normal, many people will get tired of the food and won't come every day anymore. However, we should be able to maintain stable revenue in the future."

After Hua Yurong finished organizing the accounts and handed them to the servants, Tao Yanyan instructed, "Starting tomorrow, let Yu Nuo go on an inspection tour with you. She's been eating and drinking in the palace all day long, her life has been too easy. She needs to learn some skills. She's growing up day by day, she can't just be lazy and become a little pig. While you're still in the capital, take good care of her. If she can't be taught or doesn't listen to advice, report back to me, and I will punish her severely."

He Yinuo, who was chewing on a skewer of barbecue, said, "Mother, you're speaking so loudly, I could hear you even from this far away. Don't worry, Mother, with my second sister-in-law teaching me, I'll definitely learn diligently. I'm so smart, I'll definitely learn it in no time, how could I accept punishment?"

Having grown up surrounded by love, He Yinuo is bursting with confidence and feels very deserving of her status.

"However, I have to attend the flower viewing banquet at Prince Yu's mansion tomorrow. My cousin asked me to go, saying that Prince Yu's aunt is looking for a match for my cousin and wants me to go and accompany her. Can I go find my sister-in-law after the flower viewing banquet?"

Tao Yanyan wouldn't stop He Yinuo from socializing. He Yinuo was often a guest of honor at banquets held by the families of the princes and relatives, so she smiled and said, "It's fine, but be mindful of your manners. If someone says you're fat, you should know how to refute it, right?"

He Yinuo thumped her chest loudly: "Of course I'll say: Did I eat your rice? Wear your clothes? Spend your money? Does my plumpness bother you? You're spouting so much nonsense. If you're so capable, go and argue with my father."

Tao Yan smiled. Her daughter was thirteen years old and still didn't have any body image anxiety. If she wasn't anxious, then so be it. In the prosperous Tang Dynasty, plumpness was considered beautiful, and her daughter's figure was still within a controllable range. In a few years, when she had a sweetheart and knew how to dress up, she would naturally pay attention to it.

The following day was the flower viewing banquet at Prince Yu's mansion. Families of officials of the fifth rank and above in the capital were scrambling to get an invitation. The Su family had to pull a lot of strings to get one. Early in the morning, the Su family started preparations, dressing up the two young ladies of the mansion and sending them to their carriages.

Su Yue glanced at Su Xing beside her and said disdainfully, "Since you got so much money, why didn't you buy the most fashionable clothes? The one you're wearing is from last year. Today we went to Prince Yu's mansion, so please stay away from me. I don't want my girlfriends to know that you don't know how to dress up and always wear outdated clothes."

Su Xing glanced at her but didn't say anything. The dress was bought by her mother for three taels of silver; it fit perfectly and suited her skin tone, so she didn't see anything wrong with it. Moreover, the gold hairpin she bought from Zhenbaozhai perfectly matched the pattern of the dress. She bought the hairpin first and then matched it with the dress; it was impossible for her to change the hairpin just for a fashionable dress.

Anyway, she didn't care much about getting married. Whether she could catch the eye of a wealthy family's wife was something she hadn't really thought about. She took out an arithmetic book and started reading it in the carriage. In her opinion, learning more skills and having a means to make a living was much more practical than finding a good family to marry into.